57 research outputs found
Review of Thomas Pangle, Aristotle's Teaching in the Politics
No full textAt first glance, Aristotle’s Politics is a repository of dry, professorial lecture notes. Although the work contains the occasional literary reference or historical digression, analysis, argumentation, and socio-political taxonomies predominate. Beneath the surface of such prose, Pangle locates an Aristotle who seeks to involve the reader in dialogical exchange—much like as in a Platonic dialogue—by means of dialectical, rhetorical and literary devices. Pangle—a student of the political theorist Leo Strauss, a translator of Plato, Aristophanes and Sophocles, and the author of books on modern political theorists such as Montesquieu, Locke, and the Federalist Papers—has written a study of the Politics informed not only by a close reading of the text, but also its relationship to modern republicanism, and the conflict between rationalism and religion. A previously published introduction presents what Pangle takes to be Aristotle’s rhetorical strategy in the Politics; it is followed by chapters organized around individual books in the Politics (a chapter each for Politics I, II, and III, and consolidated chapters for Politics IV-VI and VII-VIII—the last of which had been previously published in part). The text is followed by almost 50 pages of notes, notes in which Aquinas is cited as frequently (and sometimes more frequently) than contemporary Aristotle scholars like P. Simpson, R. Kraut, and E. Schütrumpf and Alfarabi is cited more frequently than F. Miller (although by far the most frequently cited authorities are the 19th century scholars F. Susemihl, R.D. Hicks, and above all, W. Newman). The book is clearly a mature work of scholarship, informed by extended reflection on Aristotle’s Politics and the subsequent western tradition of political theory and philological commentary which has responded to it
Review of Thomas Pangle, Aristotle's Teaching in the Politics
No full textAt first glance, Aristotle’s Politics is a repository of dry, professorial lecture notes. Although the work contains the occasional literary reference or historical digression, analysis, argumentation, and socio-political taxonomies predominate. Beneath the surface of such prose, Pangle locates an Aristotle who seeks to involve the reader in dialogical exchange—much like as in a Platonic dialogue—by means of dialectical, rhetorical and literary devices. Pangle—a student of the political theorist Leo Strauss, a translator of Plato, Aristophanes and Sophocles, and the author of books on modern political theorists such as Montesquieu, Locke, and the Federalist Papers—has written a study of the Politics informed not only by a close reading of the text, but also its relationship to modern republicanism, and the conflict between rationalism and religion. A previously published introduction presents what Pangle takes to be Aristotle’s rhetorical strategy in the Politics; it is followed by chapters organized around individual books in the Politics (a chapter each for Politics I, II, and III, and consolidated chapters for Politics IV-VI and VII-VIII—the last of which had been previously published in part). The text is followed by almost 50 pages of notes, notes in which Aquinas is cited as frequently (and sometimes more frequently) than contemporary Aristotle scholars like P. Simpson, R. Kraut, and E. Schütrumpf and Alfarabi is cited more frequently than F. Miller (although by far the most frequently cited authorities are the 19th century scholars F. Susemihl, R.D. Hicks, and above all, W. Newman). The book is clearly a mature work of scholarship, informed by extended reflection on Aristotle’s Politics and the subsequent western tradition of political theory and philological commentary which has responded to it
Multiresponse modeling of variably saturated flow and isotope tracer transport for a hillslope experiment at the Landscape Evolution Observatory
No full textThis paper explores the challenges of model parameterization and process
representation when simulating multiple hydrologic responses from a highly
controlled unsaturated flow and transport experiment with a physically based
model. The experiment, conducted at the Landscape Evolution Observatory
(LEO), involved alternate injections of water and deuterium-enriched water
into an initially very dry hillslope. The multivariate observations included
point measures of water content and tracer concentration in the soil, total
storage within the hillslope, and integrated fluxes of water and tracer
through the seepage face. The simulations were performed with a
three-dimensional finite element model that solves the Richards and
advection–dispersion equations. Integrated flow, integrated transport,
distributed flow, and distributed transport responses were successively
analyzed, with parameterization choices at each step supported by standard
model performance metrics. In the first steps of our analysis, where seepage
face flow, water storage, and average concentration at the seepage face were
the target responses, an adequate match between measured and simulated
variables was obtained using a simple parameterization consistent with that
from a prior flow-only experiment at LEO. When passing to the distributed
responses, it was necessary to introduce complexity to additional soil
hydraulic parameters to obtain an adequate match for the point-scale flow
response. This also improved the match against point measures of tracer
concentration, although model performance here was considerably poorer. This
suggests that still greater complexity is needed in the model
parameterization, or that there may be gaps in process representation for
simulating solute transport phenomena in very dry soils.</p
The Learning of Liberty: The Educational Ideas of the American Founders
No full textLorraine Smith Pangle is professor of government and Co-Director of the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Study of Core Texts and Ideas at the University of Texas at Austin. She is the author or coauthor of four books, including Virtue Is Knowledge: The Moral Foundations of Socratic Political Philosophy.
Thomas L. Pangle holds the Joe R. Long Endowed Chair in Democratic Studies in the Department of Government at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author, coauthor, or editor of more than a dozen books, including Justice Among Nations: On the Moral Basis of Power and Peace.
With a New Preface by the Authors.This Kansas Open Books title is funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Humanities Open Book Program.American schools are in a state of crisis.
At the root of our current perplexity, beneath the difficulties with funding, social problems, and low test scores, festers a serious uncertainty as to what the focus and goals of education should be. We are increasingly haunted by the suspicion that our educational theories and institutions have lost sight of the need to perpetuate a core of moral and civic knowledge that is essential for any citizen's education, and indeed for any individual's happiness. Mining the Founders' rich reflections on education, the Pangles suggest, can help us recover a clearer sense of perspective and purpose.
With a commanding knowledge of the history of political philosophy, the authors illustrate how the Founders both drew upon and transformed the ideas of earlier philosophers of education such as Plato, Xenophon, Milton, Bacon, and Locke. They trace the emergence of a new American ideal of public education that puts civic instruction at its core to sustain a high quality of leadership and public discourse while producing resourceful, self-reliant members of a uniquely fluid society.
The Pangles also explore the wisdom and the weaknesses inherent in Jefferson's attempt to create a comprehensive system of schooling that would educate parents and children and offer unprecedented freedom of choice to university students. An original closing section examines the Founders' ideas for bringing all aspects of society to bear on education. It also shows how Washington, Jefferson, and Franklin presented their own lives as models for the education of others and analyzes the subtle, provocative moral philosophy implicit in the self-depiction of each.
The Learning of Liberty is historical and scholarly yet relentlessly practical, seeking from the Founders useful insights into the human soul and the character of good education. Even if the Founders do not provide us with ready-made solutions to many of our problems, the Pangles suggest, a study of their writings can give us a more realistic perspective, by teaching that our bewilderment is in some measure an outgrowth of unresolved tensions embedded in the Founders' own conceptions of republicanism, religion, education, and human nature
Impact of sensor failure on the observability of flow dynamics at the Biosphere 2 LEO hillslopes
No full textThe Biosphere 2 Landscape Evolution Observatory (LEO) has been developed to investigate hydrological, chemical, biological, and geological processes in a large-scale, controlled infrastructure. The experimental hillslopes at LEO are instrumented with a large number of different sensors that allow detailed monitoring of local and global dynamics and changes in the hydrological state and structure of the landscapes. Sensor failure, i.e., a progressive reduction in the number of active or working sensors, in such an evolving system can have a dramatic impact on observability of flow dynamics and estimation of the model parameters that characterize the soil properties. In this study we assess the retrieval of the spatial distributions of soil water content and saturated hydraulic conductivity under different scenarios of heterogeneity (different values of correlation length of the random field describing the hydraulic conductivity) and a variable number of active sensors. To avoid the influence of model structural errors and measurement bias, the analysis is based on a synthetic representation of the first hydrological experiment at LEO simulated with the physically-based hydrological model CATHY. We assume that the true hydraulic conductivity is a particular random realization of a stochastic field with lognormal distribution and exponential correlation length. During the true run, we collect volumetric water content measurements at an hourly interval. Perturbed observations are then used to estimate the total water storage via linear interpolation and to retrieve the conductivity field via the ensemble Kalman filter technique. The results show that when less than 100 out of 496 total sensors are active, the reconstruction of volumetric water content may introduce large errors in the estimation of total water storage. In contrast, retrieval of the saturated hydraulic conductivity distribution allows the CATHY model to reproduce the integrated hydrological response of LEO for all sensor configurations investigated
Comparative Analysis of Inter-Basin Transfers, Leakage, and Precipitation as Inflows within the Urban Hydrologic Cycle
No full textWater budgets are useful frameworks for urban planning, water management, and water conservation efforts—particularly as urban populations continue to grow. This research quantifies and compares magnitudes and temporal dynamics of precipitation, inter-basin transfers (IBTs), and leakage of potable water as inflows within the South River Watershed (SRW), an urbanized watershed located near Atlanta, GA USA. Monthly and annual precipitation totals derived from local gauge networks and from the PRISM model showed good agreement, with a long-term spatial average of 1407 mm for the watershed. Annually, precipitation was the dominant inflow into the watershed at 88%, the net IBT of potable water was 165 mm, or 10% of inflows, while leakage was 30 mm or 2%. Dividing leakage volume by whole-watershed area belies the reality that those inflows are very localized. Over land areas where the leakage can conceivably occur, it may represent 48-96% of total inflow.Master of Science (MS)Geoscience
Land Management Controls on Hydraulic Conductivity of an Urban Farm in Atlanta, GA
No full textIncreasing urbanization is often accompanied by problematic changes in watershed hydrology. Decreasing surface permeability can lead to increased overland flow volumes, which may spread surficial contaminants and increase the strain on municipal stormwater infrastructure. This study examines a mixed-use property in the Proctor Creek watershed in Atlanta, Georgia, to better understand how land-management practices influence soil overland flow potential. Field saturated hydraulic conductivity (Kfs) measurements were collected from soils 1) subjected to compaction, 2) in urban agricultural use, and 3) under common lawn maintenance. Mean values were 9.1E-7 cm/s, 2.2E-4 cm/s, and 9.0E-6 cm/s respectively. Measurements were collected in-situ with the use of the Aardvark constant-head permeameter. Statistical analyses indicated a substantial difference in Kfs based on land-management practices and that urban farming can increase soil Kfs and limit overland flow. Additional analysis revealed no significant difference in grain-size distributions suggesting land-management practices controlled Kfs, not soil texture.Master of Science (MS)Geoscience
Quantifying and Comparing Water Transit Time Distributions in Urban Beaver and Stormwater Retention Ponds in the Atlanta, GA Metropolitan Area
No full textBest management practices, including stormwater ponds, are implemented to mitigate the effects of urban stormwater. While these structures may effectively modulate local surface runoff, empirical analyses suggest their cumulative effect on watershed-scale streamflow is marginal. Beaver impoundments, by altering the downstream hydrologic flow regime, may offer a natural, complementary means of managing stormwater. This study seeks to determine how the transit times of water traversing urban beaver ponds compares to those occurring within stormwater ponds, by adding a conservative tracer (Br-) near-instantaneously at inflow points to three beaver impoundments and two stormwater ponds in Atlanta, GA in dry (fall) and wet (spring) seasonal conditions. The expected difference in flow due to seasonal conditions was not observed at all sites. Transit times were longer in the stormwater ponds than the beaver ponds in both seasons, and both pond types show altered flow path configurations due to short term weather dynamics.Master of Science (MS)Geoscience
Comparing the Hydrologic Performance of Intensive and Extensive Green Roofs in Atlanta, Ga USA
No full textHigh concentrations of impervious surfaces are synonymous with urbanization. A heavy presence of impervious surfaces cause stormwater buildup and excessive runoff. Green roofs are designed to reduce stormwater runoff from roofs and reduce peak outflow. The range of stormwater retention in green roofs is wide, ranging from 40-80%, due to differences in soil depth, vegetation type, and local weather patterns. This study compared two green roofs located in downtown Atlanta, GA, USA, one extensive and one intensive. The extensive roof was found to reach 20% volumetric water capacity, while the intensive reached 25% for the highest capacity event, over a prolonged wetting period. The volume of outflow was higher in an intensive roof due to higher soil volume (23.27 m3) when compared to an extensive roof (10.25m3). A determination of superior retention amongst soil depths was not made due to variable initial soil moisture, with a regularly irrigated extensive roof kept at 10% volumetric capacity for the duration of the study.Master of Science (MS)Geoscience
Comparative Analysis of Water Storage Dynamics and Storage-Discharge Relations among Variably Urbanized Catchments within South River Watershed, DeKalb County, GA
No full textThe study of watershed storage is critical for understanding watershed hydrologic functions, ecosystem dynamics, and biogeochemical processes. However, few studies have quantified how much water lies in the subsurface in urban watersheds. In this study, dynamic storage was estimated, and storage-discharge relations evaluated in Atlanta, GA among variably urbanized watersheds. Streamflow data from 2012-2016 was utilized and the simple dynamical systems model employed. Dynamic storage values in these watersheds are small: ~3mm to ~9mm. The small dynamic storage values observed across the watersheds are linked to watershed urbanization; however, other subsurface properties of the watersheds may also account for this small storage values. Storage-discharge relations across all the watersheds are non-linear, except the most developed sub-watershed (35% impervious surface area). Two less urbanized sub-watersheds (21% and 26% impervious surface area), showed high streamflow sensitivity. Overall, this study shows that the simple dynamical system model performs well in urbanized watersheds and the South River Watershed can be regarded as a dynamical system.Master of Science (MS)Geoscience
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